Location: Masuda, Yokote City
Site(s) of performance: Naka-Nanoka-machi Street and the street behind Yokote Elementary School
Date(s): July 8 and August 16
Category: Bon Dance
According to legend, when Ogasawara Yoshifuyu from Kai Province (present-day Yamanashi Prefecture) constructed Masuda Castle here in 1363, he sacrificed his own daughter together with a calf to pray for the strength of the castle and military success of his family. A century later, the Ogasawara family left the castle and Doi Saburō became the new occupant, who out of pity for the sacrificial death of the princess made the villagers dance around the Princess Mound at Obon to console her spirit. This is believed to be the beginning of the Masuda Bon Dance. Its tragic origin is said to have had some influence on the way it was danced. The addition of folkloric songs and other elements since the Genroku period (1688–1701) have made it more entertaining.

About Bon Dance